Daytona, Indy wins make McMurrays season a success, Chase or not

Marty O'Brien, mobrien@dailypress.com | 247-4963

HAMPTON – It's inconceivable that a golfer could win the PGA's two biggest tournaments, The Masters and the U.S. Open, and not be picked for the Ryder Cup. NASCAR is different, and the guy who won its two most prestigious races this season, Jamie McMurray, probably won't be in the 10-race Chase to decide the Sprint Cup Series champion.

McMurray isn't sweating it. With wins in the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400, his season will go in the books as successful perhaps as anyone other than the Chase winner, although it wouldn't take even that much for him to be happy on the track.

"Honestly, my opinion is that if you give me a choice of making the Chase and not winning a race, and it doesn't even have to be Daytona or Indianapolis (site of the Brickyard), I'd rather win a race in a year than make the Chase and not have won," he said. "Even the guy who finishes second (in the Chase), people don't pay attention to that and don't remember that.

"You look at some guys who fight to get into the Chase and then you don't hear about them even when they get in it. People remember guys who win races."

McMurray talked about racing during a visit on Tuesday to Langley Air Force Base. He was there to get a close-up look at the F-22s that will perform the fly-by at Richmond International Raceway on Sept. 11, prior to the Sprint Cup Air Guard 400.

McMurray met with one of the pilots who will perform the fly-by at RIR and with the crew that performs maintenance on the F-22s. For a guy who feels the need-for-speed on a weekly basis, McMurray is ambivalent about flying in the F-22, a fighter aircraft with the capability of reaching speeds of more than 1,300 mph.

"I would rather do a simulator than fly in that I believe," he said "I flew with the Thunderbirds, so it gives you a whole new appreciation for the pilots and what their bodies go through.

"I honestly think if they gave me a chance I probably would take it."

During the fly-by at RIR, McMurray will be in the cockpit of his Chevrolet, hoping to drive his way into the top 12 of the Cup standings and into the Chase.

He enters Saturday's race at Bristol in 15th place, 105 points out of 12th. That's close enough to give him some hope, although no driver has ever made the Chase when entering the final three races 50 or more points out of 12th.

If he doesn't make it, he won't complain. Nor will he suggest the Chase format be tweaked to include the Daytona and Indianapolis winner.

"It's very easy to complain about what you have," he said of the current format. "It's the same for everybody, because they make the rules at the beginning of the year, so it doesn't matter how they format it.

"When they give you a pencil and paper and tell you to make the rules, it's a lot harder than people realize. Whatever they decide for next season, I'm sure will make it more exciting."

McMurray has had his share of excitement in 2010 anyway. His Daytona and Indianapolis wins included him in two-thirds of what is considered U.S. auto racing's "triple crown" for car owner Chip Ganassi. Dario Franchitti gave Ganassi the other third by winning the Indianapolis 500.

"I don't think you'll ever see that happen again," McMurray said of Ganassi's triple. "Any of those races is really hard to win, so it's a really big deal to be a part of Chip winning all three."

More excitement is in store for December, when he and wife Christy are expecting their first child, a boy.

"It's been a really good year on the race track, but that tops everything," he said. "We're both really excited and I'm very scared."